Banking on ideas to save Springfield money

With growing pressure on the city's general budget, Springfield Finance Control Board Executive Director Stephen P. Lisaukas is encouraging city department heads who have ideas for money-saving projects to take them to the bank.

Lisaukas is proposing the creation of a new "Productivity Bank," a city-created revolving fund that lends money to departments for innovative cost-saving ideas with a proven payback.

A department might propose investing in a new technology or energy-saving project that could pay for itself over a relatively short time, Lisaukas said. "The departments will formally apply like a bank loan, and have to make justification for the use and how they will pay the bank back," he said. "The money recycles."

We think it's a capital idea, especially in times like these when the city's finances - like municipalities everywhere - are straining just to pay for the essential services and personnel such as police, firefighters and teachers.

Without a dedicated fund for innovative ideas, Lisaukas said the projects tend not to get done.

The creation of a new "bank" is an example of the kind of innovations that Springfield has embraced as a result of the guidance provided by the state-appointed control board.

When the control board arrived in 2004, the city was $41 million in debt, and employees' salaries were frozen. The state stepped in with a $52 million interest-free loan, which kept the city from falling into receivership. With the control board's tenure set to expire in June, the city is better positioned than most to weather the effects of the recession. The current downturn in the economy will require more innovation and creativity.

Lisaukas, who will make a formal presentation outlining the details of the proposed "Productivity Bank" during the control board's Dec. 18 meeting, sees the bank as another "opportunity for Springfield to be at the forefront of local government in Massachusetts."